OGC Nice Handball, struggling in the standings before the 5th round (7th), showed a completely different side against Metz but lost 24-27. The Niçoises had an excellent first half (11-8) before collapsing against Metz’s new defensive organization.
A heavy schedule with matches against the top 3 from last season, only one victory in four games despite high-level recruiting (Lacrabère, Darleux, Knustdottir, Escribano) done this summer. Hosting the reigning French champions was expected to be complicated, but the nice handball seen against Fleury-Loiret (31-32 defeat) gave hope for an upset.
Unfazed and with unwavering determination, the Niçoises started the match well with, from the first action, an interception and a goal by the French international, Alexandra Lacrabère. Spurred by the excellent playmaker Beatriz Escribano in attack and Béatrice Edwige in defense, Nice held strong against the power of Metz Handball, tied 2-2 after 5 minutes. More aggressive defensively and precise in attack, Metz regained control and led 5-3 after 15 minutes, with defenses clearly taking precedence over attacks. A timeout by Sébastien Gardillou saw the Niçoises bounce back, driven by Lacrabère, Chavez, and Le Bihan, who each scored a goal in under two minutes. At the end of this first half, Serbian Biljana Bandelier put on a show, scoring three consecutive goals. Nice led at halftime 11-8!
“We showed a nice side, other than the one against Issy Paris (31-24 defeat), we found our bearings. In those respects, this game is positive,” acknowledged Sébastien Gardillou at the end of the match.
Conceding 8 goals in one half against Metz was already an achievement, but there was no doubt that the Metz coach would adjust his team to show something different. At the start of the second half, two players went head-to-head: Alexandra Lacrabère for Nice with 3 goals in five minutes and Yvette Broch for Metz with 5 goals in eight minutes. The result, Metz equalized at 15-15, playing in the 38th minute. The 3-3 defense (three players tight on the line, 3 advancing) significantly hindered the Niçoises, who only scored three times in 10 minutes. A quarter of an hour from the end, Metz took the lead, building an average gap of 3 goals that held until the end of the match. The two goals by Rocha and the 8th by Lacrabère changed nothing. Nice lost 24-27 and remained in seventh place in the standings before two manageable matches against lower-table teams (traveling to Mios, 8th, and hosting Toulon-St-Cyr, 9th).
“Their change in tactics caused us problems. In this game, we had a great Alexandra Lacrabère (8 goals), but we can’t afford to play without a left back. It’s a disappointing result because in the first half we were ahead. It comes down to details against such teams,” admitted the very disappointed OGC Nice Handball coach, as well as the Nice team, which stayed on the field for many minutes.
